Even in my dreams
by lightkeykid
Summary: Marinette Dupain-Cheng is not acting herself, and Adrien is going to get to the bottom of it. Things can't get worse, right? (Post Miracle Queen)
1. Chapter 1

He was worried. He could admit it. He worried that Marinette was in over her head in something. He didn't know what it was, but she wasn't acting like herself. She barely took part in conversations; Adrien couldn't remember the last time he heard her laugh.

It came to a head when he invited Nino, Alya, and Marinette to watch one of his photo shoot. They hadn't spent much time together recently, and he took the initiative to fix that at lunch one day.

"Can you guys come this weekend?" He asked, hoping at least Marinette would say yes.

Alya shook her head. "I am babysitting the twins, and they are not allowed to go out until they clean their room. Between you and me, they are a handful when they need to do their chores."

Adrien understood. "Nino?" He asked.

"Sorry bro, I promised Alya that I would help watch the girls. You know how they can be." Nino shrugged. "Next time?"

Meanwhile, Marinette barely paid any attention to the conversation. "What did you ask, Adrien?" She continued scribbling away in her notebook.

"Do you think you can come this weekend? To my photo shoot?" He asked quickly.

She frowned immediately, and Adrien's stomach fell. Oh no, what happened between them that caused that reaction? He could swear they had reached a point where he felt comfortable. That must have been a one sided feeling.

Marinette opened her mouth to answer, but then her eyes dimmed. "Sorry Adrien. I can't." She quickly gathered her supplies and hurried away.

Alya frowned. "That's not like her at all," she pondered.

"Is everything okay? She seems distracted," Adrien commented.

"It's not like Marinette to be closed off. I'll try to find out what's going on," Alya said.

Nino put his arm around his girlfriend. "Just remember not to push too hard. If she's not feeling up to it, then leave her alone. Marinette is entitled to her privacy just like us." He directed his words to Alya, but they hit Adrien in full force.

He tried to forget what Nino said all day. When it didn't work, he decided to start his patrol early. Patrol was the one time of the day he felt truly free. As Chat Noir, he leapt across the rooftops of Paris and watched for potential akumas. At least that is what he said he did. Sometimes, he just liked to bask in the glow of the city. But as he neared the school on his patrol route, he realized there was a special set of lights that were out.

The Dupain-Cheng bakery was long closed, and its bakers were likely asleep. Marinette, on the other hand, was usually awake long into the night. He sometimes found her sketching on her rooftop under her twinkly lights that were always on. It was a beacon to him on late patrol nights. Tonight, however, the lights were off. In fact, he realized upon further inspection, they were gone altogether.

What was happening with Marinette Dupain-Cheng?

—

The next week, it got worse. On Monday, he entered Ms. Bustier's classroom to find the seat behind him empty. It wouldn't have been odd if he hadn't seen Marinette sitting in the back corner of the room. She sat there with her head ducked over her notebook. She scribbled away as she had done last week at lunch.

Adrien took his seat and glanced at Alya, who wore her hurt plainly on her face.

Nino turned around and whispered to her. "Did you talk to Marinette?"

Alya spoke lower than him, and Adrien had to strain to hear what she said. "Barely, but I did not see this coming. Nino, do you think I did something?"

Her boyfriend patted her on the hand. "Marinette might need some space. She'll come to us when she is ready."

The problem was that Adrien didn't believe that was coming any time soon. As Ms. Bustier started the lesson, he spied a look at Marinette. A little part of his heart hurt. Adrien knew they weren't that close, but Marinette always had a smile for him. He enjoyed having her behind him. Her chatter with Alya lightened his busy days. Now, however, she made no eye contact with anyone and looked straight at the board. He heard the whisperings between his classmates. _Did Alya do something? Is Marinette at fault?_

All the unanswered questions finally got to Adrien, and he excused himself from class for a bathroom break. He hurried to the stalls for some privacy. Once Adrien was sure it was safe, he beckoned Plagg out of his shirt.

"This is getting worse Plagg! Marinette doesn't act like this with her friends, not even when she's not feeling great."

The kwami crossed his arms. "What do I know about Pigtails?" He tried to change the subject. "You have any cheese?"

Adrien refused to take the bait. "I've got to figure this out." His brainstorming was interrupted by a crash and a roar. Seriously? He never needed an akuma, but today he was already stretched thin with his Marinette problem. At least, he might get some of his frustrations out as Chat.

"Plagg, claws out!"

One freed akuma, Chat Noir stood on a rooftop with a panting Ladybug. This battle seemed to have taken more out of her than usual. Though, now that he thought about it, Ladybug had good reason to be tired.

"Are you okay, LB?" He asked his partner.

She straightened and shot him a not smile; really, it was a quirk of the lips without any conviction. "I'm fine, kitty." She readied her yo-yo to swing away when Chat stopped her.

"Wait! Can I ask for some advice?"

Ladybug raised an eyebrow. "What do you need my advice for?"

"A girl." When he saw her wince, he realized how callous that sounded. "Not like that! I promise. I'm just worried about my friend. She's been alone lately, and it's not like her."

She patted him on the shoulder. "You're a good friend, Chat, but maybe she needs space?"

"That's what everyone else says. I'm just not sure."

"Sometimes, it's nice to take some time alone for yourself when you're overwhelmed. I know I do."

Chat caught the misery in her tone. "Ladybug, it's been weeks since Master Fu left. How are you doing?"

Her shoulders tensed. "I said I'm fine, didn't I?" Before he could say anything else, she swung away. Between her and Marinette, Adrien didn't have the heart to chase after her.

—

_Adrien ran. He ran faster and faster until his lungs burned, but he couldn__'t stop. Marinette and Ladybug needed him. Marinette struggled in a pool of water while Ladybug hung from the ledge of a building by her hands. He couldn't transform, he couldn't reach them, he couldn't do anything to help them. Everyone stood around Marinette and watched her struggle. No one even tried to help her out. Why wasn't anyone helping her? Adrien punched out, ready to shout his transformation phrase._

He woke with a start. "Plagg!" He groaned, reaching for his kwami.

Plagg flew over to him. "What happened, kid?" He waved a small paw over his chosen's glassy eyes.

Adrien finally controlled his breathing. "Nothing. It was just a bad dream."

His kwami sighed. "Just go back to sleep. You're overthinking all of this."

He reluctantly followed Plagg's orders. What use was he to Ladybug or Marinette if he couldn't even think straight? Some sleep might do him some good.

Adrien fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, but Plagg waited a few minutes more to fly out into the Parisian night. He did not want to explain to him why he was sneaking out, nor could he explain.

Plagg alternated his route whenever he left the Agreste Mansion, but he always ended up at the same place. He phased through the familiar pink walls to find Marinette snuggled up to a few kwamis already. She wore the comb, the bracelet, and the pendant along with her signature earrings. Pollen and Trixx sat on her lap while Wayzz snuggled into her hair.

Plagg harrumphed. "Way to start the party without me, Buginette."

Marinette giggled. "You sound like Chat Noir with that nickname. Don't worry, we waited for you before we started storytime." She gave him a small scritch on the ear before he made his way to his favorite spot on her left shoulder. Tikki made a face at him from her right shoulder. He returned it with sticking out his tongue.

He would never admit it aloud, but he enjoyed this secret time with Marinette. Plagg didn't get the chance to say goodbye to his old Master; this was the best time to make the most memories with his new Guardian.

As he listened to Trixx tell stories about a former fox heroine, Plagg wondered what he could do for her. Adrien was right; she was too stressed to do this alone, even if he didn't understand what exactly was going on with her.

Maybe it was time for him to really step up to being her partner in all ways.

The next morning Adrien woke up refreshed despite his bete noire. He had a plan, and he was going to stick to it no matter what. As the Gorilla drove him to school, Adrien recited the plan over and over again.

_No matter what, talk to Marinette_. It was a simple plan. Anything more, and he would surely mess something up.

Unfortunately, as he walked into the classroom, he forgot to account for one major problem: Lila Rossi. Class hadn't started yet, but that didn't stop Lila from spouting her poison.

"Oh Alya, why are you sitting by yourself? Where's Marinette?" Lila asked dramatically. Adrien clenched his fist. Anyone could see Marinette was sitting in the back as soon as they entered the room. Why did she need to make everything a big deal.

Alya, to her credit, didn't take Lila's bait. "It's not your business Lila." Her tone would have been enough to stop any more intrusion, but Lila was unstoppable today.

"Is she not feeling well? Poor thing, she's probably taking on too many responsibilities at once. It's not her fault she can't handle any of them." Silence fell over the classroom after she finished her sentence. Adrien sensed the tension in each of his classmates. He looked at Marinette who stood quietly at the back of the room. One second, she was stoic, and the next, tears fell down her face. With a quiet sob, she ran down the steps and out the door.

Alya moved to follow her when Adrien stopped her. "I'll go."

She nodded. "Take care of her," she whispered as he left.

Adrien heard Alya's voice rise inside the room as he left, but he didn't have time to hear what she said. He needed to find Marinette. Footsteps faded away, and a door closed on his left. She must be in there, he thought. Adrien quietly leaned his ear against the wood. Soft crying could be heard. He knocked on the door.

"Marinette, are you in there?"

"Please. Leave me alone," she pleaded.

Adrien stepped away from the door. Isn't that what Ladybug suggested he do? Give her space to figure out her life? Wouldn't he want the same consideration? He almost walked away when he saw Marinette's face flash through his mind once more. Tears streaming down her face. Adrien shook the image out of his head and opened the door. He found her hugging her knees and burying her face in her arms. She was surrounded by cleaning supplies precariously perched on their shelves.

"I told you to go away." Her voice came out muffled.

He sighed and sat down in the small space next to her. "I'm not leaving you alone. If I left the room crying, you would be here right next to me."

Marinette snorted. "How do you know that? For all I know, you would rather be in a supply closet than learning about the various invasions of Paris." She looked up at him with her bluebell eyes. They were still a little glassy from her crying, but he saw that little spark of Marinette in them.

"Come on Marinette, I wouldn't be caught in a supply closet with anyone but you."

She let out a small laugh, and then buried her head once more in her knees with a sob. "I don't have time for this. No time for any distractions."

He recognized a panic attack when he saw it. Adrien grabbed her right hand with both of his. He relaxed her fingers and massaged them between his own. "Shh, Marinette, it's okay."

"No it's not." She tried to tug her hand away. "I need to do this alone."

"What if you don't Buginette?" A nasally voice interrupted them. They both turned to see Plagg floating in front of them.

"Plagg!" Marinette hissed. "What are you doing? You shouldn't be away from Chat; what if he needs you…" she trailed off from her scold. Her gaze drifted from Plagg to Adrien's right hand holding her own. Specifically, to the ring on his right hand. "Oh no. Oooooh no. Nooooo," she moaned.

Before Adrien could say anything to defend himself, Plagg zipped back inside his shirt pocket, and the door opened to reveal Ms. Bustier and Alya.

"Is everything alright? Alya told me you both left the classroom and hadn't returned," Ms. Bustier explained. Her brow was furrowed with worry.

Marinette opened her mouth, but Adrien spoke first. "I was having a panic attack, and Marinette helped me through it."

She hummed in agreement and dropped his hand. "Adrien is right…" Marinette softly said. "Can we go back to class, Ms. Bustier?"

Ms. Bustier nodded reluctantly and bundled the three back to class. Marinette returned to her seat in the back, and later when Adrien glanced her way, she looked anywhere but at him. His phone lightly buzzed, and while Ms. Bustier wrote on the board, he checked his notification.

_Meet me at the bakery today after school -M._

—

"What were you thinking, Plagg?" He hissed down at his bag as he made his way to the bakery after school. Fencing had been canceled, and with the promise of macarons, the Gorilla allowed him to go to the bakery.

"My lips are sealed until you talk to her," the kwami responded from inside.

Adrien entered the bakery and smiled at Marinette's mother. "Hello Mrs. Cheng. Is Marinette here yet?"

She returned the smile. "Yes she is. In fact, she said that you would be coming today. Go on up, the door is unlocked."

"Thank you ma'am. Can I also get a box of macarons for my bodyguard? He loves the strawberry ones." He reached for his wallet when she smacked his hand away.

"Marinette's friends don't pay here. Just grab it on your way out, dear. Now shoo!" She playfully pushed him toward the stairs.

When he reached their apartment door, he paused. She said it was open, but he was skeptical. Adrien knocked anyway, and the door opened to reveal Marinette. Without a word, she grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him up the steps to her room.

Marinette sat him down on the chaise lounge. "Wait here." She climbed up to her bed and grabbed a package. When she came back down, she placed the box in his hands.

"When I first saw Plagg, I was angry. Not at you," she quickly reassured him. "At him. It was unfair of him to reveal your secret."

"Marinette…" Adrien started when she held up a hand.

"Let me finish. I was angry, but now I am not. Not because what he did was right, but because he did what I was too scared to do myself." She stepped away from him.

Adrien was confused. "To do what?"

"Will you promise not to freak out?" Marinette asked with a small smirk. There it was again, that spark. If he wasn't careful, he would happily be blinded by that spark one day.

He nodded. "I promise."

Marinette giggled. "Liar. Hey Tikki, do you want to say hi to Adrien again?" A pink blur darted out from Marinette's alcove.

"Hello Adrien. It's good to see you," Tikki sweetly said. If Adrien hadn't promised, he might have freaked out a little just a bit.

"Hi," he gasped. If Tikki was here, then Ladybug was here. And he for sure wasn't Ladybug right now, which meant… "You're Ladybug?" He squeaked.

"And you're Chat Noir." Marinette took the box and sat down next to him. She said nothing else. What else could she say? She was Ladybug. The savior of Paris, his partner, and the most amazing girl he'd met twice over.

After a few minutes of cycling through shock, disbelief, and excitement, Adrien finally knew what to say. "I can't believe you thought you were alone."

Marinette jerked back. "What do you mean?"

He turned toward her. "You told me that you couldn't tell anyone. You could have told Chat Noir at any point."

"Do you even know what I have to do?" She whispered. Marinette put the box down on the ground and lifted out a ladybug patterned egg. The Miracle Box. "I am the Guardian of this Miracle Box now. Along with defeating Hawkmoth, I need to learn all that I can about the Miraculous. There's no room for distraction anymore!"

"But you don't have to do it alone. Just because Master Fu did it alone doesn't mean you do." He thought for a second before adding, "Especially since you think you have to push away those that care about you."

Marinette held the Miracle Box close to her. "It was my mistake that cost us Master Fu. What if I make another one because of my relationships?" She looked into his eyes. "I don't want to make a mistake where I could lose you."

Just as he had earlier that day in the closet, he pulled her into a side hug once more. "Is that why you pushed everyone away? You were trying to hide yourself away from the world and focus on being the Guardian?" He nuzzled cheek on top of her head.

She wrapped her own arm around his waist. "It worked for Master Fu."

"You aren't him. You are Marinette Dupain-Cheng. You are the bravest person I know with or without a mask. You're beyond intelligent and driven. I lo-" He stopped himself. She didn't need that right now. "Best of all, you are the one he chose to succeed him. He trusted that you could do it. Isn't that enough?"

They sat once more in silence, both processing what had occurred.

"You really think Marinette is all that great? She does make mistakes, you know?" She finally said.

"I know. If she didn't, I wouldn't trust that she was actually Ladybug." He took a risk and placed a soft kiss in her hair before getting up. "I have to go, or the Gorilla will be here to drag me out of your room. Can we talk tomorrow at school?"

Marinette stood, rubbing her head in a daze. "Yeah." She shook her head. "Yeah, we'll talk tomorrow," she whispered as he made his way down the steps.

—

The next day when Adrien walked into the classroom, his eyes searched for Marinette. His heart did a little flip when he saw Marinette sitting with Alya and sharing macarons with her and Nino. Adrien thought his romantic interest was dormant after Miracle Queen. Watching Marinette giggle proved him wrong in the best way. Oh well, at least if his heart was falling again, then maybe he actually had a chance this time. She looked at him and smiled; he definitely felt that one in his toes. Marinette met him at the doorway with an individually wrapped macaron.

"Here. Passion fruit is your favorite, right?" She placed it in his hands with a wink. Yep, he was a goner. This Marinette was such a stark difference from the one he'd seen recently. If he hadn't been there yesterday, he would've thought it was an akuma attack.

He took the macaron to his desk and unwrapped it. A small folded note fell out of the packaging. Adrien hid the piece of paper under his tablet, just in case someone decided to butt into his personal business.

_Adrien, _

_From the bottom of my heart, thank you. I realize that I was scared of the future and my role in it. I thought long and hard about how to move forward from here. I still don__'t know what to do, but I do know one thing. If you want to be part of my journey as Guardian, I won't say no. In fact, you're welcome to join in on storytelling tonight. I'll explain when you get to my balcony kitty._

_Yours truly, _

_Marinette_

His heart flipped once more when turned to meet her eyes. She tapped her ear and winked at him. See you tonight, she mouthed.

He heard Plagg groan at his sigh, but Adrien didn't care. He was a goner once again.


	2. Chapter 2

She should be worried. At least once a day, Marinette found her partner staring off into space and refusing to make eye contact with her. Not enough where he stopped speaking to her (that was her m.o.), but she had to admit that this was weird, even for Adrien. Other than those few moments, he seemed normal. But should she rock the boat?

Marinette thought they had finally reached a steady pace in their friendship. Finding out that he was Chat Noir explained so much about Adrien. Ever since that day in the closet, Adrien had been so supportive and sweet, both with and without the mask. He visited with Plagg for storytime and brought her coffee the next morning for her post kwami exhaustion. After a particularly hard akuma or sentimonster, Chat listened to her rant about Hawkmoth and offered notes from his perspective. As Ladybug and Chat Noir, they were stronger than ever before.

Still, Marinette worried that a simple mistake would endanger everything they held dear. After all, her last mistake cost them Master Fu. Whenever her doubts threatened to scare her away from Adrien, he simply held her hand like he had in the closet that day and anchored her to reality. She only wished that she could return the favor somehow. Maybe this could be her chance. So instead of a crazy convoluted plan, she took a page out of Adrien's book and just asked him.

"What are you up to, kitty?" Ladybug tugged him toward her by the bell. They just finished their joint patrol and were taking a breather on the school roof. Marinette didn't lie to herself; she picked this time purposefully. Asking while he was Adrien did something to the connection between her tongue and her brain. She knew he was her goofy Chat, but her past insecurities still got in the way sometimes. Thus, here they were. "You have been acting strange lately."

His ears perked up, and he grinned. "Why, Ladybug, whatever do you mean? Have you been gossiping with Plagg again?"

She giggled and pushed him away by the nose. It was a familiar action to them both, but instead of annoyance, she did it with love. "Stop that you goof," Ladybug said, turning away. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him droop a bit. "Seriously, Chat. Are you okay? Being partners is a two way street," She reminded him.

Chat placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. She met his eyes, his bright green eyes, and he took a deep breath. "I…" He paused.

She held her own breath. What happened? "Chat?" She whispered.

Her partner sighed. "I promise I am fine. Not just to placate you, either." He held his hand up. "Chat's honor."

"I told you that I was fine just a few weeks ago," Ladybug pointed out the slight hypocrisy in that statement.

"Ah, but I actually am fine. Still," he began to placate her. He must have seen the furrowing of her brows. "You are welcome to ask me at any point if I am doing okay. It's your right as my one and only partner." Chat gave her his thousand-watt smile

Ladybug turned away before he could see the red on her ears. She wished he wouldn't say things like that. They were doing just fine without Marinette's latent feelings about Adrien and Chat getting in the way.

"Okay," She finally said. "If you insist you are fine, I will take your word for it. But if I find out there is something, Chat Noir, I will hoist you from Montparnasse Tower for everyone to see. Got it?"

"Got it," he squeaked.

"Good." She gave him a small hug. "We're still on for story time tomorrow?"

Chat nodded. "I wouldn't miss it for the world, milady."

Her stomach flipped at the nickname. This was the first time in a long time he had called her that. _Don__'t read into a pet name, Marinette. It will do you no good. You missed your chance._

"Goodnight Chat!" She shouted as she quickly swung away from the rooftop and that conversation. It was all she could do for her sanity.

—

Adrien landed in his room and detransformed. He thought he was ready for the onslaught of teasing from his kwami, but instead, he received a cold welcome.

"Why did you lie to Pigtails?" Plagg asked with his arms crossed.

Pigtails? "I thought you were over that nickname," Adrien commented as he walked over to the cheese refrigerator.

"What I call Ladybug is between me and her. And don't try swaying me with that delicious cheese in your hand. Why didn't you tell her?" Plagg asked floating away from the outstretched offering.

Adrien sighed. "It's not a bribe. I figured you were hungry. It was a longer transformation than usual."

Plagg scoffed. "You think that was long?"

"So you don't want the cheese?"

"Don't be an idiot Adrien." He swiped the cheese from his chosen. "Now confess."

Adrien fell back onto his bed. "It's not the right time. Marinette has enough to deal with right now. She doesn't need me starting my romantic nonsense again. You should've seen her face when I called her milady." He stuck his face into his pillow. "I might as well have called her Hawkmoth." His voice was miserable even while muffled.

"Why couldn't Master Fu wait until you two were done with puberty to leave?" Plagg muttered to himself as he hovered over his charge. "Get up, kid. You look pathetic."

He sat up and frowned at him. "Thanks Plagg."

"No problem. Now start acting like the suave Chat Noir you are, and tell Marinette how you feel!"

"I'm not sure if you noticed over the last year, but she doesn't think I am suave at all," Adrien moaned.

"That's because you never ask for my advice."

"No, I did. You told me to focus on cheese."

"That was then. This is now." He landed on Adrien's head. "The most romantic figures in history have been my chosen. They'd be nothing without me."

Adrien grabbed Plagg with one hand and another piece of Camembert with the other. "Start talking, cheese vacuum."

—

Snacks? Check. Pillows fluffed? Check. Laptop charged? Check.

Nothing could stop Marinette from getting Adrien to admit what was bothering him tonight. Well, nothing except Adrien himself. After all the progress they had made, she couldn't go back to the way they once were. If he wasn't comfortable sharing yet, she would wait.

Tikki gave her cheek a hug. "Don't worry too much, Marinette. You've pulled off more convoluted plans than this before," her kwami reassured her.

"Those plans didn't have such high stakes." Marinette played with one of her pigtails.

"Oh yes, the akuma sent to steal your Miraculous has nothing on spending time with your partner," Tikki said with a giggle.

"Exactly!"A soft knock on her trapdoor interrupted her before she could continue. She checked the time on her alarm clock. Why was he early?

"Are you going to let me in or what?" His voice came through the ceiling.

Marinette unlatched the hook and in fell her partner with Plagg floating behind him. He laid in a heap in front of her on the mattress.

"Thanks for the warning, Marinette," Adrien grumbled.

She laughed. "It wouldn't have hurt so much if you didn't lean against the roof trying to eavesdrop on me and Tikki." She raised an eyebrow.

He sheepishly grinned. "Guilty as charged. I wanted to see if you were okay with a little change in plans tonight."

_No I am not. _"Yes?" Marinette asked carefully. She didn't want to reject his idea outright, but she put quite a bit of thought into her plans!

Adrien took her hand and pulled her onto her rooftop. "Maybe instead of story time, we could try something else?"

Why that sneaky cat! Marinette felt the tears pool in her eyes as she took in the sight of her balcony. Her fairy lights were reconnected and set to twinkle. The plants that she had neglected recently were watered and the pots were repainted with Ladybug patterns. He brought two chairs for them to sit (of course nothing cheap or flimsy, not for an Agreste). To top everything off, three perfect roses sat on her little wooden table.

Adrien tugged her toward a chair and pulled it out for her. She took it without a word, still trying to figure out what he was planning.

He must have seen the gears working in her brain. "Marinette, I have a small request. Can you wait till I finish saying what I need to say to overthink it? Don't say you don't!" He teased when he saw her mouth drop. "I don't know if I'll have the courage to do this again."

Marinette sighed and nodded. Compared to her, he never asked for anything. She could honor this small request.

"I know that as Ladybug and Marinette, you are stressed beyond belief. I didn't want to add to it. I didn't realize until yesterday that you found my behavior weird. Plagg told me to just tell you what was going on. But this was my problem. You already have a huge burden, and you don't need me to make it worse. Honestly, I thought that I would get over it soon enough. The problem is, however, you're amazing. Period. I knew you would be," he said with a sigh.

His words had already stunned Marinette. She easily stopped thinking without an issue.

He continued, "I told myself the first day we met that you would be even better without the mask, and the last few weeks has proved that over and over again. I guess… what I'm really trying to say…" Adrien trailed off. He took in a deep breath and stopped his eyes scrunched, he looked away from her.

Oh no, he did not get to stop there. She grabbed his hand, just as he did hers when she was having trouble speaking. With both her hands, she relaxed his fingers and massaged his palm with her thumb. Marinette sat there, caressing his hand, until he was ready to say something.

He looked up at her, green eyes glistening in the fairy lights, and gave her a wobbly smile. "Marinette, I love you."

Her heart stopped beating for a quick second as she registered what he said.

_I. Love. You._

"Excuse me?" She gasped and dropped his hand.

Despair washed over his face instantly, and Adrien backed away. "This was a mistake. I am sorry."

The sorrow in his voice snapped Marinette out of her shock. "Wait, why are you sorry?"

"You already told me that you weren't interested. I should have taken the hint back then. I know there's another boy, but over the last few weeks… If you can believe me, I fell in love with you again."

Marinette processed everything he said tonight. He fell in love with her again? He didn't want to burden her with his feelings? Another boy? Once it hit her, she stood up and crossed her arms. "You- you- complete idiot," Marinette began. He flinched, but she did not back down from all the feelings crashing inside of her. This is what happened when she wasn't allowed to think! "Who did you think the other boy was? No I don't want to hear your guess. I'll just tell you!" Marinette grabbed him around the waist, pulled him toward her and whispered, "His name is Adrien." With that admission a year in the making, she softly pressed her lips against his.

Adrien pulled back quickly with a dazed look. "Just to be sure, you mean- Yeah you mean me." He wrapped his arms around her and returned to the kiss. One they both would remember for a lifetime.

A little ways above them, sitting against a chimney flue, Tikki and Plagg watched their charges finally moon over each other in person.

"I still can't believe your Chosen thought Marinette liked someone else!" Tikki giggled. "It was so obvious it was him."

Plagg didn't take the insult to his kit in stride. "And what about Buginette? She almost left him to be with the dragon girl. As if my cats would have eyes for anyone but the best."

Tikki poked him in the cheek. "Marinette is the best?" She teased.

"Of course. You wouldn't have chosen her otherwise," He grudgingly admitted. Plagg leaned against his sugarcube and purred. She cuddled back and chirped. At least for tonight, he could rest easy and watch his kittens be happy.


End file.
